Episode #185

Your Biggest Obstacle is Your Biggest Opportunity

Dr. Siavash Fooladian joins me this week to share how your biggest obstacle is your biggest opportunity. This has been said many times before – growth happens when you’re willing to step outside of your comfort zone. During med school Sia took on what has been one of his biggest obstacles to date – signing up for a triathlon and then competing in an Ironman without knowing how to swim.

Take the leap

Most people would have never taken the leap or signed up for those kind of endurance events with no skill on how to swim. But, not Sia. What I love most about Sia’s story is his resilience and mindset to go all in and be willing to figure it out. Even with months of training before his triathlon he ended up swimming that leg of his race all backstroke. Not ideal. I share my own swimming experience in this post here.

Finding your groove

Since this week is all about obstacles being your biggest opportunity, by embracing his fear and the unknowns, Sia now loves swimming. During his training, although it took him 9 months to finally get in his swimming groove, he found his groove. Swimming taught him to connect to his breath and be present. He now looks forward to swimming and has turned it into his moving meditation.

The important takeaway here is that you will face challenges in life. It’s important to get back up each time you fall. Don’t avoid challenges, rather, embrace them.

What’s the worst that could happen?

Sia also shares one way to talk yourself into something. Ask yourself, “What’s the worst that could happen?” You fail? Lose money? Fall down? Regret far out weighs the risk of stepping outside your comfort zone. Sia believes that learning and growth are all worth it in the end.